Sleep My Angel
by Divergentcake4four
Summary: Audrey and her dad, Tobias, have a perfect father-daughter relation. But,one day, Audrey feels lonely without her mother. She asks her dad about her but all he does is dodge her questions. Audrey is determined to meet her mother. But how can she will do it without hurting her father? Will she ever meet her mother? Read this heart warming tale of a father and daughter.
1. Chapter 1

**A/N: Hi! I hope you enjoy this fanfic as much as I enjoy writing it. This is my take on divergent and I really hope you like it. The characters are a bit different than mentioned in the book, please don't mind. Enjoy reading!**

 **Sleep My Angel**

I am standing against my locker, my arms crossed and my eyes focused on the crowd coming out of Ms. Lindsay's classroom. _Where are you Carly?_ I tap my foot constantly on the ground, hoping that somehow, she will suddenly appear in front of my eyes, like she usually does. _God, why am I so early today?_ Few more students leave her classroom, but she appears to be nowhere. I groan quiet enough for me to hear. I take a step further and look to my right, and _Oh my god! Is that Justin? It is Justin! Oh my god! He and I just had an eye contact! Oh no! he is walking towards me! Stay calm Audrey!_

I take a step back, pretending to be not interested and lean against my locker. I hear someone clear his throat next to me. I pretend to act scared and say casually "Hi! Justin. Didn't see you there".

"Hi! Why are you standing alone today? Where's Carly?" he asks. I try to look inside her class and turn to Justin and say "I can't seem to find here, she must be busy right now".

Justin gives a small shy smile. I bite my lip, trying hard not to burst into flames. He stares at me for a few seconds, chewing on his lower lip as if he is thinking whether or not he should say something. He says, breaking the silence "I was just thinking, if Carly isn't here maybe I could walk with you till um wherever your bus or car is".

I smile a little and say "Well, I like the idea". We start walking towards the door at the end of the hall. "Audrey! Wait!" shouts a familiar voice. _Carly!_ I mentally groan. I look over my shoulder and giver her my not-right-now-I-am-sorry face. She understands my expression and waves goodbye happily. I wave her back and she mouths 'Call me' to me.

We enter outside, stepping onto the pavement. The sky is a pretty shade of blue and grey today. I didn't realise I was looking at the sky for long, until I was pulled back to reality by Justin.

"The sky really is beautiful today" he remarks. I nod in consent. We walk endlessly on the sidewalk, not caring where we go, or where I had to stop, or where he had to.

"What are you doing for the holidays?" I ask him. "I am going to my nana's house. Last year was Grandma's" he says. "That seems nice. I am going to Grandma's today" I say, giving him my precious smile.

He smiles back and takes my hand in his. I feel my face blush and when everything is just about to turn amazing for me, my dad shows up to the love scene.

I had not noticed that we had reached the spot where my dad usually parks his car. I just walked into my own doom. My head snaps up, as I see a black car rushing down the road and coming to a harsh stop. _No not dad! Please!_ I plead subconsciously to god. Justin immediately removes his hand from mine and walks forward, pretending nothing happened. He looks over his shoulder and mouths 'I am sorry, talk to you later'. He gives a small, forced smile and walks away.

I groan and open the door to the passenger seat of the car. I settle myself, my bag on my lap. I am about to stop dad from calling out to him, but he does nonetheless. "Hey! You, yeah you. Come over her. No harm, I swear" says dad. Justin looks awfully scared as he approaches the driver's window. He leans down and greets my father politely. Dad says "Nice to meet you too. Now, enough of that crap. Listen buddy, you aren't allowed to hold hands or even touch or even talk to my daughter, understand?"

"Yes sir" Justin says nervously. My father waves him off and starts the car.

"Smooth, dad" I say mockingly.

"Yeah, whatever" he says, as he drives ahead.

I don't say anything about the topic because I know where it will lead to. Dad is never going to let me have a boyfriend. Sometimes he's just too overprotective of me. I open my bag and take out a form for my admission into the cheerleading group of our school. I take a pen and start speaking "Listen, dad. I want to be one of the cheerleaders. So, for that you need to sign this form. I have already filled the forms. All you need to do is sign over here".

Dad raises an eyebrow and says "Cheerleading?".

"Yes dad"

"So, you will do some sort of dance plus gymnastics?"

"Yes"

"Which means short skirts and t-shirts?"

"Maybe. I don't know. probably no"

"Nope"

"What?"

"I said 'No'. you are not taking part in any type of sport where you will have to wear short clothes and boys will watch you" he says sternly.

I don't argue with him further, because I have plan B in handy. I smile and say, in the sweetest voice possible "I understand and respect your decision".

He touches his hand to my forehead and says "Are you sick? Audrey, tell me". I smack his hand away and say "No, I have grown up". "In one day?" he says while laughing. I redden and say "No".

I look outside the window. We are on the highway to Grandma's house, to spend our holidays with her. My dad, Tobias Eaton, and me, Audrey Eaton, have always spent our holidays with grandma, Evelyn Eaton. She lost grandpa Marcus two years ago. Her friend, Ms. Smith, a widow too, moved in with her. They have a lot of fun together.

Talking about my dad, he has always been overprotective of me. I love him a lot nevertheless. He tutors me every day for one hour. He doesn't have a wife and I don't have a mom. I never really felt the need to ask him who she is or who she was. Since the day I was born till now, he has been both for me. We have a cook, Calpurnia. She cooks the tastiest food possible in the million years of human existence. Dad, me and grandma have a lot of fun together. Grandma has always been the person who persuades my dad to fulfil my crazy demands. That's why I like her and she is, in fact, my plan B to the cheerleading situation.

 **A/N: Hi guys! The story plot will obviously become clearer as the story moves forward. I hope you like our narrator till now. She is a typical teenager I would say. Hope you liked it! Please review, follow and favourite for more faster updates!**


	2. Chapter 2

**A/N: Hi everyone! Thanks to every user who took the time out to review this fanfic. I hope you enjoy reading this story as much as I enjoy writing them. Happy reading guys!**

The trip to grandma's house is about eight hours long, including detours like fast food drive-ins and restrooms. Every holiday, for the past thirteen years, I have slept my way through the journey. But this time, to step up my plan B game, I am not going to even close my eyes.

I pull out my earplugs from the front pocket of my bag, attach them to my phone and play a _Shawn Mendes_ song _._ I absolutely adore him. Even my phone's background is one of his pictures. I swipe up on my phone screen, to unlock it and stare at his picture. He is wearing a grey t-shirt along with black jeans. I smile voluntarily seeing him. From the corner of my eye, I see dad trying to a peek in my phone. I clutch my phone to my chest and ask "What?".

He says "Who are you so happily staring at? The boy from before?".

"It's a very popular singer's photo. Not Justin" I say.

"Show me" he says.

"Why do you want to see it? I bet you don't even know his name" I say, internally applauding for myself for using one of his song titles in my speech.

"Just show it to me" he orders. I hand him my phone and grunt. He dismisses my grumble and frees his left hand from the steering wheel, takes my phone and unlocks it. His eyes widen on seeing Shawn. He lowers his eyebrows and says "Delete it". I stare at him in horror and say "No way, dad. It's Shawn's picture. It's a crime to delete it".

He looks at me then to the road in front of him and sighs. He then says something my ears were yearning to listen him say for ages "Fine, you can have it if you love him so much". I scream out loud and hug me and plant kisses on his cheek and keep thanking me. He chuckles at my enthusiasm and shifts his focus onto the road.

I put my earplugs in and rest my head on the car window. I had never meant to close my eyes, or listen to the soothing voice of Shawn, or in a nutshell, fall asleep.

 **Tobias POV**

I step on the brake and the car comes to a slow stop. I take the keys out of the ignition and put them in my pocket. I turn to see Audrey asleep. I grin widely at my victory. She told me she had some plan, which is probably making mom sign her paperwork, and that she was not going to fall asleep and let me win this time. I inhale deeply and close the door. I go around the car and carefully open her door, taking her head in my hands. I pick her up and close the door with my foot. I walk to the door and ring the doorbell. Mom quickly appears on the door. She holds it open and says "Oh hello Tobias! Happy holidays!". I kiss her head softly and move inside to lay Audrey on the couch. Mom covers her up with a fleece blanket.

I step outside to get our luggage for the next week. I enter the house, with no further intention of stepping outside in the cold. I keep the bags in the living room. I sit on the floor, in the feet of my mom. She massages my head and says "She is asleep again. She told me she had a plan". I chuckle softly and tell her "She was going to make you sign her 'cheerleading' forms".

"Aren't you supposed to sign them?" she asks.

"I am but I'm not" I say sternly. Stern doesn't work with my mother though. She always persuades me into giving in to Audrey's demands. There have been a couple of times where I gave in.

"Tobias, she is a teenager. You can't say 'no' to her otherwise she will become one of those rebellious, drug taking girl"

"Mom! Don't do this please. I already bought her a phone. I don't want to turn her in of those rich and mean girls" I say.

"If you're rich that doesn't mean she can't be sweet and peaceful, come on Tobias, what kind of dad does this?" she says.

"Uh, my dad did" I say mockingly. She slaps my neck playfully and says "Your dad gave you every single thing you asked for".

"Yeah, that's true, he did" I say smiling, remembering old times.

"Now be a good role model and sign those forms" she orders. I groan like Audrey always does with me and I get a slap on my back in return. I clutch my back dramatically and scream in pain. My mom bursts into laughter along with me. I get up and take the forms out of Audrey's bag. I quickly sign them and go to her room. I place them on her nightstand.

I go back to the living room and say "Mom, want to watch something fun?". She nods and smiles at me. I go to the kitchen and retrieve a plate with chocolate cake and a fork. I walk to the couch and hold the plate near Audrey's nose. Mom raises her eyebrows and clamps a hand over her mouth once she sees what's happening. Audrey sniffs a couple of times and gets up from the couch. I move with the plate in my hands, making her follow me. She stretches her hands out for the cake and follows me into her room, with her eyes closed at all times. I keep the plate on the nightstand, waiting Audrey to settle herself in her bed. She lays on her bed and I cover her with the blanket and take the plate of cake away from her. I turn around and see my mom recording the scene with her phone and laughing. I laugh with her and then I take the fork and dig in.

 **Audrey POV**

 _I can smell chocolate cake. It is somewhere near me. I try to sniff harder to see where the smell is coming from. I hear something. It sounds like laughter. I also can smell cake clearly now. My mouth is watering. A drop of saliva escapes my mouth and falls on my…_. I jerk awake as I feel wetness in my mouth and on my neck. I shudder and shuffle under my blanket. I sit properly and rub my eyes. I see grandma and dad laughing together, sitting on the edge of my bed. My eyes widen and frantically scan the room. I am in grandma's house. _When did I reach here?_ I gasp as I realise I had fallen asleep on the way here. Again! I look over to my nightstand and see something unusual. There are some sort of documents kept there. I pick them up and read through them. They are my cheerleading forms and there is a signature at the bottom. It's dad's signature. I squeal in excitement and jump on him from behind to hug him. He catches me on time and laughs. I scream "You are the best dad! Thank you sooooo much dad! I love you a lot! Even more than Shawn Mendes!"

He says "I told you she will wake up early" and they both burst into laughter. I hug grandma before asking them what it is. Dad shakes his head and shows me a video where I am sleepwalking because of CAKE! My face flushes and hide my face in grandma's neck and tell her "Grandma! See what dad did! Tell him to delete it". She laughs even more and says "I recorded you and I am not going to delete it. I am having fun watching the Audrey who sleepwalks for cake". My cheeks become warm. _Oh god! This is so embarrassing!_ I release myself from her grip and make them both go out of my room. I close the door and lay face down on the bed.

 **A/N: Hi! I hope you are enjoying the story so far. For those who are waiting for the drama to begin, worry not it's a couple of chapters away. Till then, enjoy this hilarious duo or trio I should say. Please review, it motivates me to write faster. Follow and favourite to be up to date with the story! Thanks for reading!**


	3. Chapter 3

**A/N: Hi! I am back with another chapter. Thank you for your reviews! I love reading them. Keep reviewing to motivate me and make me update faster! Enjoy reading!**

"Hi, Carly!" I say on the phone.

"Hi! Oh my god, did you check your twitter account?" she sounds very shocked.

"No, I just woke up. Why? What's up?" I ask normally, crossing my fingers that dad didn't delete my account. He is against me having more than one social media account. He blocked my snapchat account last month and I can't afford to be grounded during holidays.

"Justin posted a meme for your dad" she says angrily.

"What!? Let me see" I say shockingly. I open my laptop and open my twitter account. I see that he has posted a meme which says " _You trying to ask out a girl"_ in the top with a boy and a girl holding hands. Then at the bottom it shows a monster running after the two with the caption " _And the dad comes"_. Anger threatens to burn the skin off my face. I take deep breaths and say "How could he post that Carly? he is such a bastard"

"Omg! You should kick his ass when school starts"

"Why wait till then? I am going to do it now" I say. I post a meme and tag Justin. "Carly, open my post".

"Kay, wait"

"OMG! You really posted a meme of a scared boy running away from a girl's father and then tagged Justin straightaway!" she says.

"You really took him down. You're such a queen" she says.

"All hail me!" I joke.

"Seriously, all hail you!" she says laughing.

"Did you get my mail?" I ask her. Carly and I had decided to give each other Christmas gifts through mail. We promised each other that we will open them together on the phone.

"Yeah, my mom just gave it to me" she says excitedly. "Did you get yours, Audrey?"

"Wait, let me ask grandma". "Okay"

I jump down from the bed and rush to the living room. "Some Carly has sent this package, is she your friend?" grandma asks me, holding my gift from Carly. I nod and quickly rush to my room with the gift.

"I got it!" I almost shout.

"Open on 1 2 and 3, go!" she says. I tear the blue wrapping paper to reveal a black sweatshirt that says 'My dad is my ATM'. It's the sweatshirt I saw in the mall when I went there last with her. I had already spent my pocket money so I couldn't buy it.

"Oh Carly! thank you so much" I say.

"Audrey! This is so sweet! You really bought me Adidas converse shoes!" she says. She had told me that she needed a new pair of converse sneakers so I made a plan to buy her those.

"It's so great Carly! I am going to try them on"

"OH MY GOD! THIS CAN'T BE HAPPENING TO US! AUDREY! CHECK THE SCHOOL WEBSITE NOW!" shouts Carly. I had to pull my phone away from my ear.

I open the school website on my laptop and see that the school is going to be open four days early for ninth standard as we performed poorly in science and maths. I groan and say "Really? They are going to give us just three more days of holiday! This is not fair".

"I hate this school. I have to cancel my spa plans with my sister" she complains.

"Well bye Audrey! I have to show my awesome sneakers to mom and tell her the bad news"

"Bye!" I say and end the call. I groan and lie face down on my bed. I only have four more days of holiday left. I groan and put a pillow over my head. It's not fair. Less holidays mean dad is going to make me study from tomorrow onwards.

There is a soft knock on my door. "Come in" I say. I don't get up to see if it's dad or grandma.

"What happened boo?" says a voice which belongs to dad.

"School's starting four days early. Update was on the website" I say irritatingly.

I feel a sudden depression forming next to my head, on my bed, maybe dad is sitting on the bed. He removes the pillow from my head and lifts my head into his lap. He puts his arms around me and sighs. "What can I do to make you feel better?" he asks me. "I don't know, give me more holidays, change my school" I answer. He chuckles and says "I can't do that but I sure can take you and grandma to ice skating this evening. After that, maybe we can have dinner" he offers. My face lights up and I say happily "Yes, you're the best dad!"

He smiles and I ask him "Can grandma skate? I mean will she able to? She is old, isn't she?" he narrows his eyes at me and says "My mom is even younger than you. She can skate like a pro". I laugh and I start to feel much better after all the Justin-school drama.

"Now, get up and take a bath" he orders. I scowl at him as he returns to his commanding father form.

The entire afternoon passes in a blur. Grandma still behaves like a teenager when it comes to dressing up. She had picked out three outfits and made me choose between them. I told her that I like the black skirt and peach blouse. She kept on asking if the green blouse worked with the black skirt. I shrugged and told her 'yes' but then she kept on going back and forth from peach blouse to green blouse. I got irritated and dragged dad into her room. I quickly left her room, leaving dad alone with my teen grandma.

I got dressed in my new black sweatshirt, which Carly gifted me earlier, along with skinny blue denim jeans and paired them with my black fur boots. I left my hair hanging on my shoulders. I walked to the living room and saw dad tying his shoelaces. I stood in front of him, demanding his attention. He looked up and said "Carly gave you this?" "Yeah, you like it" I say pointing at the quote written on it. He reads it and laughs. He gets up and calls grandma from her room. She arrives and we leave for ice skating in the mall.

* * *

I sit next to dad in a booth in Domino's. We spent two hours ice-skating. Dad fell on his butt twice. Clearly, he doesn't have good coordination skills. The irony is that I was laughing at him when I myself fell on my butt thrice.

"Dad was right. Grandma didn't fall even once" I say, suiting myself in the seat.

"Back in my days, I used to skate a lot with my friends" she says, her smile full of wrinkles and pride. I smile back.

Dad ordered a large pizza for all of us. We had light conversation while relishing the pizza. I see a strange man, whose face was covered in metal. He was literally pierced everywhere, waving to dad but dad didn't see him. I nudged dad and pointed at the man. He follows my line of sight and says sternly "Finish your pizza". I wonder why he is acting so strict suddenly. The man approaches our table and greets grandma with a 'hello'. He waves at me and I just smile wickedly. I don't feel good about this man. I don't want him to come near us.

He looks dad in the eye and extends his hand. Dad takes his hand and shakes it hard. "Hello, Tobias" the strange man says. "Hello, Eric". "Aren't you going to introduce me?" he says, nodding towards us. "Eric, this is my mother, Evelyn and this is my daughter Audrey" dad answers. There is something very creepy about the way they both are speaking to each other and looking at each other.

"Oh, so this is your daughter. I must say she is beautiful like her mot…I meant to say she looks a lot like you Tobias" he says. What did he mean? Whom do I look like? He glances at me. I hate the way he is looking at my family, like we are prey and he is the hunter. Dad probably senses my tension and puts a protective arm around me. I feel better knowing he won't let Eric hurt any of us.

"She has my features. What do you want?" dad asks coldly.

"Hey, I just came to meet my friend's family. After all, you gave me something that belonged to you" he says. I don't know why but I feel like punching him in the throat. Dad clenches his fist and says "Eric, I would really appreciate talking about business policies at the workplace. You see, I am busy with my family right now". I notice how dad emphasised on 'my' a little too harshly. I can easily sense the enmity between them.

Eric throws his hands up in surrender and says "Sorry to disturb you guys! Have a nice evening". With that being said, he leaves our table. I crouch, relieving the tension from by back. I look at grandma who is worried and is holding dad's hand. She shoots anxious glances towards him. My eyes flick from dad to grandma. They both are clearly talking about something they don't want me to know. Dad's grip around me tightens and he pulls me close to him. I snuggle in his arms and ask "Dad? Who was he?".

Dad stiffens, clears his throat and says "Eric Coulter was one of my clients but he turned out to be a fraud". I know he is lying. I have lived with him for thirteen years, I can tell when he lies. He wiggles his toes when he lies and I caught him doing that but it can be because he is under stress or he is anxious. I look at grandma to confirm whatever he said is true or not, she nods nervously. I make a mental note to self, to search Eric Coulter on google. I don't know if I should make further conversation about this or not. I decide not to for the sake of peace.

 **A/N: Hi again! There is going to be a lot of suspense from this chapter onwards but don't worry I'll make sure to balance it out with something fun. Please follow, favourite and be sure to leave a review! Thanks for reading!**


	4. Chapter 4

**A/N: Hi guys! I am back with another chapter. Please check out my another fanfic on divergent 'Forget Me Not'. I hope you like it and feel free to ask questions via reviews or PMs. Enjoy reading!**

"Good night, sweetheart" says grandma as she switches my bedroom lights off. She slowly shuts the door and leaves. I wait for a few minutes before removing the covers and jumping out of bed. I stretch my arms and walk to my bedroom window. I open the curtains, allowing moonlight to absorb up my entire room. I sit on its ledge. There is no railing to prevent someone from coming in or going out. I am intrigued to go out and sit on the grass, under the moonlight. I slip my feet into my boots and take my phone with me. I jump out of the window and dust off myself. I lay myself on the ground, staring at the night sky. I run my hand over my phone, deciding whether or not to search about Eric. Curiosity is forcing me to search about him but love is holding me back to look for him. If dad finds out that I am being nosey in his matter, he will scold me.

I sigh and pull my phone out. I will take punishment any day rather than not knowing the truth. I open Facebook and type 'Eric Coulter'. Hundreds of Eric pop up on the screen. Well, god wasn't satisfied with one of his kind that he made hundreds of him. After a few minutes, I find his profile. I check his bio which says,

 _Eric Coulter_

 _35_

 _Male_

 _Studied in Frank Anthony High School, degree in philosophy in Houghton University._

 _Friends: Peter, Drew, Edward, Molly, Max and 15 others._

There is nothing interesting enough for me to spy on. So, it looks like dad and grandma were telling the truth. I shut my phone and slip it into my pocket. I close my eyes and release the tension from my body. I hear some noises from inside. I get up quickly and jump inside. I haphazardly throw my boots away and get in bed. I don't know how long it took for me to fall asleep.

* * *

I take my laptop bag with my book to dad's room. This holiday's homework was to read 'To Kill a Mockingbird' and write 1000 words essay on it. I nudge open his door with my left foot. "Sit there and work" he says while pointing at the space next to him on the bed. Dad always makes me do my homework and studies in front of him. I open my laptop and pull out my headphone, which I painted rainbow with nail polish.

I attach them and suddenly dad says "What do you think you are doing?" "Um, listening to music while doing my work" "No headphone, no music, only work" he says sternly and gets back to his office paperwork. "Ugh, you're no fun" I say to him. "Audrey work" he commands. I start typing, writing an essay on this book is a very easy task because it is my favourite book. Every sentence comes easily to me and I finish the essay in one hour. I save the file and put my laptop in front of dad. He reads the essay, while I get up and stretch. He says "Wow, Audrey. Have you really written this?". "Of course, dad" "Well, good then, you're free for the rest of holidays". With that being said, I throw my hands in the air and shout "This is the winter of Audrey! Yay!" and run out the door. But, of course, I bump into the door on my way and get a cut on my forehead, near the hairline. I sigh and walk back to dad who settles me on the bed and brings out a first-aid kit. He cleans the wound and applies a bandage and asks "Were you drunk?".

"Ha Ha, very funny" I reply irritatingly while he laughs at me. I get up to leave and this time walk slowly and carefully to the living room. I feel so frustrated that I wear my jacket and my shoes, ready to go outside. "Where are you going?" asks grandma. "Outside". "Ah, meeting old friends, Sam, Polly and Emily?" she asks. "I have friends here?" I ask confusingly. "Yeah" she answers, looking horrified that I forgot my own childhood friends. I laugh and say "Just kidding".

I go outside in the snow and make my way to the middle of the street. I shout "Sparrows Reuniting". 'Sparrows' is our squad name. I am surprised and emotional when I see that they all come running towards me. It's been a long time since I saw them. They all throw themselves on me and I fall on the ground. "Hi Polly, Sam, Emily!" I say cheerfully. We all lie on the snow-covered grass together, in a circle. We, girls, have been together since birth. "Audrey, remember that time when you cried the entire day because you wanted to come here and play with us?" says Emily. Everyone chimes in with a 'yes'. "Remember when Sam thought that burglars were people from Bulgaria?" says Polly. We all laugh at Sam's stupidity. We spend four hours talking, playing hide and seek and we might have probably broken Mrs. Jordan's flower pot. We part and go to our houses. I open the door and step inside. I hang my coat and see there is a letter kept on the table that says 'Audrey, from dad'. I close the door behind me and pick up the letter. It says that grandma and dad have gone to Mrs. White's tea party. Poor dad. It also says they will return at nine.

I throw the letter away and jump on the sofa, shouting "The entire house is mine, Whoop!" I put on my pjs and dance in the entire house with loud music playing. I go and jump on every bed in the house. I didn't realise grandma's house had five guestrooms. I am currently in guest room no.5, jumping on the bed and spraying jasmine perfume in the entire room. The battery of my speaker dies and sudden silence fills the room. I breathe heavily and lie down on the bed. My feet dangle next to the bed. I waver my feet back and forth rapidly.

My leg hits something hard. I get up from the bed and look under the bed. There is a box labelled 'High School'. I pull it out and open it. There's a lot of dust floating around me. I take out what seems like a year book. I flip it open and see some pictures of dad, his arms around two dark-skinned boys in their football jerseys. It's a picture of his football team. I didn't know he was on the football team. His friends names are Ezekiel Pedrad and Uriah Pedrad. I then take out a photo album. I see pictures of dad with his same football friends. There are some with a short dark-skinned girl too. Her name is Christina. Most of them are with a petite blonde girl. She is small but extremely pretty. I see her again in his senior yearbooks. Her name is Beatrice 'Tris' Prior and one weird thing is that dad's name is written as Tobias 'Four' Eaton. I never knew that his nickname was 'Four'. I thought it was 'Toby'. I really am surprised. I see through all of his high school pictures and see that his school's name was 'Lexington High School'. The same as Eric's. I even noticed him on the football team photographs, it didn't seem like they were enemies or anything. Well, whatever, photos don't speak. I put all of them back in the box and push it under the bed.

I get up and check my phone. I have five notifications from Facebook. I open google to access my Facebook page. I have five new messages from Eric Coulter. _Shit!_ I mutter under my breath. I take a deep breath and tell myself "If you can punch Jimmy in the nose, who is twice the size of you, and make him bleed. You can definitely send Eric back where he came from".

I read his messages which say-

 _Hi Audrey!_

 _It's me, Uncle Eric._

 _We met yesterday, remember?  
_

 _Me and your father are best friends, so I thought we should get to know each other._

 _I am safe, I promise._

"If you say you're safe, then of course you're not" I shout at the screen. I write a curse word and send it to him. then, I block his account and shut the website. I close my laptop and sit back, relieving the tension in my body. I close my eyes and drift off to sleep after a long day of playing and studying.

 **A/N: Hi! So, what do you think of Eric? He is really being creepy but don't think this situation is over. The repercussions are still there. Please review, follow and favourite! Thanks for reading!**


	5. Chapter 5

**A/N: Hi! Thank you for your reviews! I really put some effort in this chapter. I hope you enjoy it. Also go check out my other fanfiction on divergent 'Forget Me Not'.**

"Last day. There are so many last days and last times for anything. Last day at camp. Last day in Disneyland. Last day in California. The last time I listened to Shawn Mendes. Last time I saw Carly. Last time I was here. The last part of anything is extremely delightful but it is full of sorrow as well. Today is the last day for a person to do anything. Today is also the last day I will see my friends and you. But everything doesn't have to last so early. Four days of school…" I am cut off by grandma saying sarcastically "That is the Christmas spirit I wanted. Talking about last days and last times".

"Well, if you won't send me to school. I can show you a better Christmas spirit" I say. Since morning, I have been trying to convince dad and grandma to let me stay here instead of going to school. I have failed miserably every time. Even being overly philosophical doesn't help.

"Audrey, you are going to school day after tomorrow. No more shenanigans" commands grandma.

"Fine" I say sadly, while the pain in my chest intensifies. It feels like someone stabbed me with a knife. Okay maybe I am being too much emotional. It's just leaving this place is always hard. All my childhood friends are here, grandma is here. It feels extremely homey to be living here. Grandma leaves the room, telling me to pack my stuff quickly and come in the living room.

I open my closet and take out my suitcase. I stuff it with all my clothes, toiletries, shoes and other accessories. I keep two outfits aside, one for today and another one for when we leave tomorrow. I finish packing, take a bath and put on a red Christmas sweater with black skinny jeans and brown fur boots. I step out in the living room and scream loudly as I see a gigantic pile of gifts near the Christmas.

Grandma and dad sitting on the sofa smile at my excitement. I dive in the gift pile and pick up few small and big ones. I sit in between dad and grandma. I start ripping apart a small one. It reveals a small box, inside of which there is a key. I take the key in my hand and glance confusingly at both of them. "What am I supposed to do with this?" I ask dad. He simply shrugs in response. I open another gift with the similar wrapping paper, hoping it will tell me what to do with the key.

Inside the gift, there is a heart shaped box with a keyhole in the centre of it. The box itself is so pretty that I am too excited to see what is inside it. I take the key, turn it around a few times and the lock opens. I remove the lid and see a doll which looks exactly like me! I quickly hug dad and grandma for the gift.

I see a certificate around which a ribbon is tied. I pick it up and see it's from dad. I look gratefully at him and see him smirk. I ignore his smirk. I loosen the ribbon and see that the certificate says-

 _The Award for Best Daughter_

 _Goes to_

 _Susan Norwood_

 _Congratulations!_

I hold the certificate up and say "Seriously? It's not funny". Dad laughs and grandma looks at him confusingly. I pass her the certificate and she reads it. Then, it's just dad laughing, grandma playfully slapping him on his arm and me irritated by his prank. "Okay, fine you got me this time dad. I'll get you next time". He stops laughing and clears his throat then says "Alright, open the others".

I rip open another one of my presents. It is a long blue dress with a black velvet coat and black high-heeled boots. I look over my shoulder to face Jesus Christ's small statue and mouth 'Thank you'. I turn to hug dad and grandma saying 'Thank you' over and over again. The entire morning and afternoon goes by opening presents, drinking hot chocolate, and eating cake.

* * *

I am lying on my bed, listening to _Twenty-One Pilots_ in loud speaker mode. I get up and start moving to the music. I jump up and down on the bed, my hair swinging side to side, and my hands up in the air. Suddenly, a hand covers my mouth and another hand grabs my legs. I kick my feet around the person, a boy, carrying me. My screams are muffled by his hand. He carries me out the window and releases me. I turn around to see it's Sam's brother, Harvey. I kick him in the shin and say "You scared me Harvey!". He says mockingly "Ouch, I didn't know little Susie kicks hard". "Well, I kick other places too and very hard as well, wanna try?" I ask him, rubbing my palms together. "No, look I am sorry and Sam made me do it for some stupid goodbye party. Oh, she's here" he says, pointing at Sam, coming out of the bushes.

"Why were you in the bushes?" I ask her. She dusts off leaves from her coat and say "To hide from your grandma and dad. It seemed cool at first but I think something bit me on the face". She rubs a red swollen spot on her forehead and says "The sparrows are inviting you to a party at midnight. Sneak in some food like chips and dips"

"What? Sneaking in food? Is it a secret midnight party?" I say excitedly. She nods and we both jump up and down together. "Wait, I don't want Harvey to kidnap me again" I tell her. She looks at him and winks. I slap both of them on the arms. They laugh and reassure me it won't happen again.

I climb back into the window and gasp loudly as I see dad sitting on my bed. I misstep and trip, entering my room. I stand up quickly and dust off my clothes. I act like nothing happened and sit next to dad.

He says casually "Midnight party? Sneaking in chips?". I whine and say "Come on! not again". Last time we had a secret party, dad crashed it. He said some extremely boring 'dad' jokes due to which we all went home early. Till date I believe he did it on purpose to drive us back to our houses.

"Okay fine, I won't come….until one" he says jokingly. I throw my stuff dog 'Riley' at him but he catches it. It seems like I forgot he was on the football team. "Oh Okay, I won't but you will come home before three. I don't want to hear excuses" he orders. I nod my head in consent. I push him out of my room and close the door.

I decide to wear my new blue dress to dinner as well as the party. Grandma doesn't have a clue that I am going to the party. Plus, everyone dresses up fancy for Christmas dinner in my house. We say our prayers and dig in our plates. I eat a little too quickly as usual and hope no one notices it. Dad shoots me looks throughout the dinner. I keep on ignoring him. Grandma says "So Audrey, did Sam invite you to the secret party?". The peas fall off my spoon and I stare with my eyes wide at dad. "Ugh dad, you can't keep secrets" I say irritably. They both laugh at me. This is how the dinner goes by making fun of me, eating, and recounting dad's childhood experiences.

* * *

Everyone has gone to sleep and I sneak in my bag a chocolate cake and few cans of sodas. I take my bag and move out of the door quietly. Even though everyone knows I am going out, it feels victorious and rebellious to sneak out of the house at midnight.

I walk down a few blocks to Polly's house. I sneak into her backyard and start climbing the ladder to the 'Official Tree House of the Sparrows'. I knock twice then thrice at the door. Emily opens it and ushers me in. Everyone is there, including Harvey.

"Why is he here?" I ask Sam. She shrugs and says "For the food". I sigh and sit next to Emily. Polly smiles and comes to sit next to me.

Polly clears her throat and says "I am making a toast so please, hold up your sodas!". We all raise our cans and she continues "I have known you all since birth. You have been like the sisters I never had. I love you, all of you. I hate my parents for shifting to stupid New York. I mean I love NYC but I hate to spend time there without my girls. I love you!". We take a sip of our soda. Everyone makes a toast about how sad they are for leaving this neighbourhood. When it's my turn I say "I love all of you. I will never forget you. We may not be four in number, no offence Harvey but we are the real sisters from the 'Sisterhood of the Travelling Pants'. I will become a lawyer and fight for our right to live here together. We don't need parents…" I am cut off by Harvey saying "What? You don't need parents? I need them".

"What do you even know about parents? All you do is disrespect them" I say.

"What do you know? you don't even have a mom." he says.

"Whatever idiot" I say, disregarding his usual mean comments.

"You know, now I clearly understand why Susie is like this. Because of no mother, she is growing day by day to become a mean, snarky man" he says.

"Shut up Harvey! You dumb idiot!" I spill my entire soda can on him and dump his face into the mayonnaise dip. I take my bag and leave.

"Hey! Stop Audrey" I hear shouts from above as I climb down the ladder.

Sam, Emily and Polly climb down after me. They pull me in a group hug and say "Don't listen to that dumb-ass. He has no personality". I nod and hug them even tighter.

"I will miss you guys" Emily says. We chime in with 'Me too' and 'I love you'. We hold on to each other for a while and then part. I wave goodbye to everyone and blow a kiss. They blow kisses back and wave me goodbye.

I go back to my house and enter inside quietly. I remove my shoes and knock softly at dad's bedroom door. He says "Come in" in a sleepy voice. I enter inside his room and burst into tears. I mumble "I don't want to go back home. I want to live with grandma. Please dad!". He taps the space next to him and says "Come here". I lay next to him. He hugs me tightly and says "Shush, honey. We will always come back here. These things happen. You're going to feel better. Shush".

He rocks me until I stop crying. I wipe my tears and sneeze into his t-shirt. He laughs and says "Well, nice Christmas gift". I laugh and snuggle against him. I am too tired from crying and extremely sleepy to ask him about my mother. Ever since Harvey said those things, I can't help thinking about her. I can't stop thinking about how much different our lives would be if she was here, how much different dad would be. If she was here, she would have persuaded dad to let me have a boyfriend, or to let me go to a boy-girl party. My whole world would turn around if she was with me. Here. At home.

 **A/N: Hi again! Please leave a review if you enjoyed this chapter and want me to update more quickly. Thanks for reading!**


	6. Chapter 6

**A/N: Hi guys! I am back with another chapter. Check out my other fanfics on divergent 'Forget Me Not' and 'Waiting Forever'. Enjoy reading!**

I chew on my lower lip nervously, trying to figure out how to approach the subject. Dad looks at me and asks "What is the matter? Are you okay?". I hesitate "Yeah, no I'm fine". I turn away from him and lean my head against the window, calming my nerves. I hate that every parent has some magical power with which they sense their child's uneasiness. Knowing the fact, he will probably guess what I am about to ask him, makes me more anxious. By the time I convince myself to ask him directly, the car comes to a stop. I look out the window, we have stopped in front of McDonald.

"Get a table for us. I am going to park the car" dad says. I sigh and get out of the car. Dad takes the car to the parking lot. I go inside and get a table for two.

I suit myself on the high bench, from which I am likely to fall. Dad enters the restaurant and looks around for me. I stand on my toes and wave to him. He finds me and waves back. I slip off from my seat and fall on my butt. Dad comes rushing to my aid but I quickly get up, ignoring the pain in my back and sit back on the bench again. I act like nothing happened and smile. He covers his mouth with his hand, hiding his laughter. I roll my eyes and gesture him to laugh. He removes his hand and chuckles.

"Why is it that you keep falling?" he says mockingly.

"I don't do well with heights" I say. He nods knowingly and says "Well you got this trait from me, I also don't do well with heights". I feel a pit form in my stomach. "I didn't expect you to be scared from heights. I mean grandma told me you went ziplining with your friends once" I say.

"I can control my hyperventilation unlike you" he explains. "I can do it" I exclaim. I don't like when people think that I can't do things they can do. "Come on Audrey, you can't even stand on a chair without support" he says. "Yeah, you're right" I say. His jaw drops and he asks "Are you conceding?" "What, no!" I exclaim. He bursts into laughter. Everything I was planning to ask him vanishes from my mind. I don't want to ruin this moment where we are having fun.

* * *

We returned home an hour earlier. Dad and I did karaoke throughout the journey. We had so much fun I didn't want to ruin it. The question still lingers in the back of my mind. It's not easy for me to shut it out like I used to do it when I was younger. I shake my head and focus on my tying my laces. My ears begin to ring. I don't know why. I become so confused while tying my laces that I leave them be. Dad sees my frustration and comes to tie my shoe laces. He ties them in double knots and tucks them in, just like he used to when I was a kid. "You still think I will fall on flat ground?" I ask him. He looks up and says while laughing "Yes, when you were little you tripped over your own feet walking. Twice in a row"

"Walking is difficult" I joke. He smiles and says "Be back by 7". I nod and take my jacket. I leave to play outside with my friends. I go to the community playground. I meet up with my friends Fargo, Mark, Joanne and several new kids that I don't know. We decide to play basketball in the court. Fargo and a kid 'Austin' divide teams. We are sixteen in total so there are eight in each team. As always, Fargo, Mark, Joanne and I are together in our team 'Eagles'. The rival team calls themselves 'Bulls'. The Eagles are off to a great start. We easily score 10-4 in the first half.

In the second half, I have the ball in my hand. I dribble the ball and cut through my opponents easily. But, Ron blocks my way. I fake step towards the right to divert his attention. He blocks me on the right and I pass the ball to Fargo behind him. Unfortunately, she isn't able to reach the area near the basket. I make my way towards the basket, still blocked by few girls and boys. I distract them, especially girls, with my chatter. They turn around to talk to me, not clever enough to guess what am I about to do. I wave my hands towards Mark who has the ball. He does an overhead pass, hoping I would catch it.

Suddenly, a boy tries to jump high and catch the ball before. He and I jump together, bumping into each other. Also, the ball makes me its target and hits me on my knee. He stumbles a bit but seems to be fine. I fall on the ground, screaming in pain. I clutch my right leg which is bleeding from I don't know where. I feel hot tears escaping my eyes.

Fargo helps me onto a bench and tells Mark to call for help from an adult. Because Mark is highly intelligent, he calls my dad. Dad comes rushing to me with a first-aid kit. He sits down on the ground in front of me and rolls up my jeans. I cry harder as cold air hits my leg, making the pain worse.

"Hey! These things happen all the time" Dad tries to calm me down. He sends all the others home as it is 7 already. He says "The injury is a bit harsh. Sit still it will take time but you're fine". I nod and wipe my tears with the heel of my hand. I wince as my hand brushes against my nose.

"What? Is your nose broken?" he asks worriedly. I nod. He touches my nose and I scream "Ow". He tells me to stay quiet and let him examine my nose. I try to focus my attention onto something else. I look towards other kids playing in the park. There is a little girl playing with their parents. Her parents chase her while she giggles and runs with her wobbly feet. Her mother catches her and pins her down, tickling her. Her father joins in. They tickle her until she starts to scream and laugh. I begin to wonder what it would be like to have a mom. How she would pack our picnic basket and dad would steal the chocolate pastries from it. How she would dress me for my birthday party. How much fun she would make of dad and me when we fall on our butt. How much I would resemble her. Suddenly dad says "It's not broken, just a little swollen". My eyes shift towards dad who is currently cleaning up my knee and wrapping bandage around it. I ask him "Dad, who is my mom?". He doesn't answer.

"Dad, who is my mom?" I ask again. He doesn't answer. He continues to clean up blood from my leg. "Dad, I asked you something" I say a little more loudly. He keeps on ignoring me. He bandages my knee and gets up. "Dad, who is my mom? Where is she?" I ask him again. He gathers all the medicinal supplies back in the box. "Dad, I am asking you something. Why can't you tell me?" I ask again.

He says nothing but offers me his hand to stand up. I don't take his hand and say again "Everyone has a mother and I don't. Why can't you-" He cuts me off by saying "Enough Audrey". He nods towards his hand. I take his hand and ask again "Dad why can't you tell me about her? I deserve to know-" He says more strictly "I said enough Audrey. Now, stand up". I stumble while standing. Dad wraps his arm around my waist. My entire body weight is on his arm. He basically carries me to our house. We don't speak to each other the way back home. I don't understand why he is so reluctant to let me know about mom. He doesn't seem to understand that I deserve to know about my mom. He doesn't understand so many things about me which only a mother can. Doesn't he know that a girl needs her mother? Seeing his response, it looks like I have to find out who she is. I will find out who she is.

 **A/N: Hi! Did you like this chapter? Please follow, favourite and review! It motivates me to update faster. Thanks for reading!**


	7. Chapter 7

**A/N: Hi guys! I am back with another chapter. Thank for all the reviews! I have finished my first fanfiction on divergent 'Forget Me not'. Be sure to check it out! I have also started a new one 'Waiting Forever' for my fourtris lovers. Please check that out as well. Enjoy reading!**

I walk out of the bedroom, careful of my injured knee. I am still dressed in last night's clothes. Everything about yesterday pains me. I go to the kitchen, suit myself on a chair and lean down on the counter.

Calpurnia turns around from the stove and says "Good morning Audrey!". I smile sadly and say "Good morning Cal". She furrows her eyebrows and says "Why are in you a bad mood today? I thought you didn't like school". "I still don't like school. It's just that…" I leave my sentence hanging in the air, not sure how to hide yesterday's events. "What is it?" she asks. "I wanted to meet my friends today. I don't want to be alone here" I say. I wanted to escape the tense atmosphere of home by going to school. She ruffles my hair and says "Aw, if you want I can stay with you today". "No Cal. It's alright, you have better things to do rather than stay with stumpy legs" I say. She laughs and asks worriedly "Are you sure?". "Yes, I am" I reassure her as she gets ready to leave. She grabs her purse and says "The lunch is in the refrigerator. Change your bandage and take some pain medicine after finishing your breakfast". "Ok-ay" I say. She leaves the house, closing the door behind her.

I finish my food and place the dishes in the sink. I decide to take a shower. I wear a plain red t-shirt and a black skirt. I change my bandage and take some painkillers. I stand in the living room, thinking about what I should do next. I can't do anything crazy because of my knee. After a long debate with myself, I wear a jacket and put on sneakers and head outside.

I decide to take a long-walk. I zip down my jacket and tie it around my waist. I walk down the street, my eyes taking in the surroundings. I pass various places I didn't know existed before in this town. Tattoo parlour, coffee houses and drive-in cinemas. It feels good to be outside. Yesterday was one hell of a rollercoaster. I decided not to ask dad about mom anymore, knowing I won't go any answers. I have decided to find out who she is on my own.

I take my phone out of my pocket to check what time it is. Suddenly, I bump into someone. I look up and say "Sorry, I didn't see you there". "It's my fault really. I was- Hey! Aren't you the girl from my history class?" says a cute looking boy. "Sorry, I don't recognize you" I say. "Yeah, you probably don't because I joined school two weeks ago. Anyways, I am Levi" he extends his hand. I shake hands with him and say "I am Audrey". "Audrey, that's a nice name" he says. "Thanks, Levi is also a good name" I say, complimenting him back. He smiles and runs a hand through his thick brown hair. He has amazing brown eyes, the kind of eyes every girl would be dying to fall for. He has a sharp jawline, full pink lips and bronze skin. I am nowhere near compared to his beauty with my bruised knee and swollen nose. "What are you up to?" he asks me.

"Well, I didn't go to school today so I am just wandering around town" I say casually. He smiles and says "Me too, not leaving a good impression for a new kid" he jokes "Anyhow, let's do something, together". "Um sure, what do you want to do?" "Have you ever been on a motorbike?" he asks. "You drive a motorbike!" I exclaim. He smiles seeing my excitement and nods. "Yeah you know we can drive around this place" I say casually, trying to come off as cool. He chuckles and says "Will you be able to get on it? You know because of your knee?". I look down at my knee, realising it hasn't ached for a long time. "It doesn't hurt much" I say. "Cool" he says.

He walks to the other side of the street, to his bike. He rides it back to where I am standing. I squeal in excitement and he chuckles. I get on behind him, wrapping my hands around his waist. Electricity courses through my veins as he begins to drive. I hold onto him tightly for the first few minutes until I get used to the rush of the motorcycle.

He takes me to Starbucks, where we ended up covered in whipped cream after playfully spilling drinks on each other. Then we went to a restaurant whose name we can't even pronounce, for lunch.

Currently, we are standing outside my house. He leans against his bike and opens his mouth to say something but his phone starts to beep. He takes it out of his pocket and says "It's a text from dad". I think about my own dad, who is probably stuffed in a room full of clients he has to attend today. I check my phone to see if dad texted me. His text says-

 _I will be home late tonight around 9. Have dinner on time. Take care._

I text him back and shut my phone. I look up to see Levi still texting his dad. He sighs and I ask him "Are you in trouble for missing school?".

He says "No, my dad understands. He is actually blasting my phone with texts asking about you". "What?" I ask him. He looks up from his phone and says "He's my dad. Of course, he'll ask about which girl I am dating". I feel heat rush to my cheeks. He chuckles and says "Don't you want to know what he's saying about you?". "Whatever Levi" I say "Don't tell let your dad say anything to my dad. My dad will freak out big-time". He holds his hands up in the air, seeing my paranoid look, in surrender saying "Alright, my mouth is zipped". He zips up his lips with an invisible key and throws it away. I laugh softly. We exchange our numbers before he leaves. I wave him goodbye over enthusiastically as he drives away. I go back home and decide to tidy myself. I step out of the shower with a smile plastered onto my face. No matter how much I try to suppress it, it makes its way back to my face.

I get dressed up in some snuggly sweatshirt and sweatpants. I eat whatever Cal made and left in the refrigerator this morning. I lie down on the couch and look up 'Levi' on Facebook. I swipe through various pictures of him. But one picture catches my attention. I zoom in on a picture where he is standing with what I assume his parents. They are looking oddly familiar to me. I snap my fingers as I search through my memory. My jaw drops in shock as I realise why his parents look so familiar. I saw them in dad's yearbook from his high school. My eyes shine bright as I realise the possibility of finally getting answers about my mother.

 **A/N: Hi! What do you think of Levi till now? Is he any good for Audrey? Who do you think Levi's parents are? Be sure to leave your guesses in the reviews. Please follow, favourite and review! Thanks for reading!**


	8. Chapter 8

**A/N: Hi! I am sorry for the delay. Unfortunately, I got in a road accident. My health conditions are much better. Here is the next chapter, it may not be up to the mark but it was necessary for the next twist. Enjoy!**

 **Tobias POV**

"Tobias! You can't do this with your own daughter. One day or another she will want to have a boyfriend then what will you do?" shouts mom on the phone.

"Drive him away" I say.

"Are you crazy? Do you want to her to remain alone her entire life?"

"Oh god! No! I don't want her to remain alone forever but can't you see what's happening!?" I say angrily.

"What is happening?" she asks.

"She is slipping away from me. Now, she wants a boyfriend then the other day she will want to move in with him then marriage. It's all too much for me" I explain sadly.

"Tobias, she is growing up. She is entering the real world and you have to accept it. Don't think she will leave you so soon. Don't you know your own daughter? Didn't she always say that she will never leave your house and never get married?"

I sigh and rub my forehead "Yeah, it's just that one day she was so little and would call me every day from playschool because she wanted to talk to me and now…it's like she doesn't need me anymore"

"Oh honey! Every parent goes through this. I went through this when you were moving out. I know she's your baby girl and she always will be. You need to accept the fact that she is growing up. If you think she doesn't need you anymore then you are wrong. She still needs you to keep her from falling" explains mom, laughing at the last sentence.

I chuckle and say "I can't believe it's happening so fast".

"It always happened fast. Time moves fast with our loved ones. It's you who has to make wonderful memories with them. Don't be so tough on her Tobias"

"Fine" I groan "She can have a boyfriend"

"Good. Well, I am going now. Bye!"

"Yeah, bye!" I say as I shut my phone. I sit down on the edge of the bed, holding my head in my hands. I never thought I'd feel this miserable seeing my daughter grow up. It's happening so fast. It's like she was in my arms, crying, one day and the next, she has grown up.

I close my eyes and feel the memories rush back to me. I remember how-

 _I nudge open the door with my right foot, carrying bags full of baby clothes, toys and diapers. I enter inside and Cal immediately sees me struggling with the bags. She takes the bags from my hands and starts filling the cupboards with the stuff. I ask her "Where's Audrey?". She chuckles and tells me to follow her. I follow her into my bedroom where Cal points at Audrey sitting in front of the mirror. I go and take Audrey in my arms. She giggles and her thin lips become a fountain of spit. Cal says "Mr. Eaton, I'll be leaving now. Everything's in the cupboard". "Thank you, Cal" I say while rocking Audrey in my arms. Cal chuckles again and says "You might want to make the baby girl sit in front of the mirror and see what happens". I look confusingly at her but all Cal does is laugh._

 _Soon after Cal leaves, I place Audrey in front of the mirror. Audrey screams and attacks the mirror with her chubby hands. She seems shocked seeing another Audrey in the mirror. She shouts at her own reflection and then turns around and crawls back to me._

 _I take her in my arms and laugh at what just happened. Audrey starts giggling when she sees me laugh which makes me smile even more._

* * *

 **Audrey POV**

I wander outside dad's bedroom, thinking if he's done talking on the phone, and sometimes putting my ear close to the door, listening to his conversation. I had told grandma about Levi and pleaded her to talk to dad about it. She said she would try her best to convince dad about Levi.

I press my ear against the door and try to listen to what he's saying. I press my ear closer as I am unable to hear what he's speaking. Suddenly, the door opens and I quickly step away from the door. I stand still with a blankness in my expression. Dad shuts his phone and leans against the wall. He probably senses my stiffness and asks "What were you doing?". I laugh weirdly and say "I just came from the kitchen, you know, eating food…". He eyes me suspiciously and says "Alright". I give my weird laugh again and twirl my hair around my finger. Dad sighs and says "Are you planning on going somewhere". "No, why are you asking?" I say. "Because I feel like we need to talk" says Dad.

I feel a shudder go down my spine. I have been dreading this talk since well, yesterday. But it's scary to see dad this tense. I go to the dining room and help dad lay the table. We sit at the table and I start poking my food with a fork, waiting for him to begin the conversation.

"So, about this boyfriend thing" dad says, twirling his fork in the noodles. He is as embarrassed as I am to talk about this. "Yeah" I say. "Grandma told me about Levi" he says "He sounds like a….great guy". I like the way he stuttered between his words, typical father.

"Listen, you can go out with him but you know my rules- No touching of any sort anywhere, No kissing, No going out without my permission" he says.

"Alright" I say "Wait?..are you serious? For real?". He shrugs and says "Yes for real". I shriek and run around the table to hug him tightly. Dad sighs and hugs me back tightly. He holds me in his arms for quite a long time. I had meant this to be a quick hug but there's something more to this. Suddenly, I feel my shoulder getting wet. _Oh Jeez! Is dad crying? What should I do or say?_ I become stiff as more drops of tears hit my shoulder. I pull away and see dad trying to wipe his tears and behave as if nothing happens. "Dad are you crying?" I ask softly. He sniffs and says "No". "Awww, Dad come on! why are you crying?" I ask while hugging him back. He holds me tightly in his arms and says "Promise me you'll never leave me for any boy".

I sigh as the realisation hits me. I say "Dad, I'll never leave for any stupid boy or even for a million dollars". He holds me tightly until he's convinced that I am never leaving him. The entire evening is spent making promises to each other. It's so sweet to see that my tough dad can be soft as cotton candy sometimes.

But what I dreaded comes next,

he says he wants to meet his parents before we go out any further.

"I want to meet his parents tomorrow" he demands "anytime is comfortable for me". "Alright" I say "I'll text him and check with his parents". I go to my room and pick up my phone. I text Levi about meeting his parents at 4pm. Unfortunately, his parents were thinking about the same. God! Why is everything not going my way today!? If dad meets Levi's parents, he's never going to let me date him. Dad doesn't have any friends except his boring office colleagues. I can't even ask his parents about my mom now. Dad will probably sense that I will ask them about my mom so now he won't let me date Levi. My one chance of meeting Zeke and Shauna and possibly getting to know who is my mother is thin.

 **A/N: If you thought I'd let Levi's dad be Eric then you are wrong! I am not that cruel. Anyways, be sure to check out my new divergent fanfic 'Waiting Forever'. I am sure you'll enjoy it. Thanks for reading!**


	9. Chapter 9

**A/N: Hi guys! Sorry for the delay, I have been busy in School stuff. I promise to not delay chapters again. Thanks to everyone who are following this story as well as those who have left reviews. Keep them coming! I love reading what you guys think about this story. Enjoy!**

"Take a right. Right Dad! Take a right from the first red signal!" I yell the directions to Levi's house at dad. He says sternly "It's not a right. I know where Madison Square is".

I simply lift my shoulders in response. Dad has this strange habit of not following instructions. He always wants to do things differently. He even tried to bake a chocolate cake using chocolate syrup and after we took it out of the microwave, it was just a black gooey substance in a cake pan. Cal was very angry at the mess we made in her kitchen, although it's technically ours. I look out the window and happily watch dad turn towards Rochester Avenue instead of Madison Square.

After fifteen minutes of confusion, dad finally gives up and pulls over to the side of a street. He leans back into his seat and says "Well, we are…. I don't know where we are". I smile and mockingly say "Only if you would have taken a right from the first red-" I am cut off by dad's grunt. I stay quiet for a few minutes, observing cars pass by.

"Should I call him?" I ask him, breaking the silence. Dad grumbles then agrees. I ring Levi and he picks it up on the first ring. "Hi" he says cheerily. "Hi, I need directions for your house again, sorry" I glare at dad while speaking to him.

"What are you talking about? Weren't we supposed to come to your house?" he asks. My eyebrows furrow in utter confusion. I answer "No, I said that my dad wants to meet your parents, which means I should be coming to meet you at _your_ house".

"Oh! I thought the boy should meet his girlfriend at _her_ house…well, anyways, I am halfway there to your house. So, why don't we meet there?" he says. "Fine, bye!" I say and shut my phone.

Dad raises his eyebrows and I answer "He's at our house. Let's go back home". He sighs and starts the car.

After what seems like a lifetime, we reach back home. I quickly get out of the car, hoping we reached before them. Somehow, I spot their car pulling over in our driveway. I turn around and watch dad's expression turn sour. His lips pucker as if he has tasted something bitter. I widen my eyes at him and say "Try to be nice". He replies with a shrug and says "I make no promises". I roll my eyes and watch the 'Pedrads' leap out of their jaguar.

Levi, a dark-skinned man and a brunette hop out onto the street. I tug at dad's hand and make him walk towards them. As we approach, I feel hesitation in dad's steps, which makes me leave his grip and rush towards our guests. I quickly pull Levi in a hug, shake hands with his dad 'Zeke' and share a small hug with his mother 'Shauna'. I stand next to Levi and watch his parents and my dad staring at each other. Dad hesitantly approaches to shake Zeke's (Yes! I can call him Zeke) hand. But he pulls him into a very manly hug and says "Tobias! It's great to see you". Shauna does the same only with tears glistening in her eyes.

I ask Levi quietly "Do you find this extremely confusing or is it only me?". "We are old high school friends" answers Shauna. All that comes from my mouth is "Oh".

Within few seconds, they fall into their own conversations reminiscing old memories. I learn that dad used in be one of the best football players in his high school. Zeke was one of them as well. It turns out that Shauna was the most intelligent of this bff squad. They burst into laughter as Zeke pulls one of his old jokes. For the next half-hour, it's three adults and two teens standing in the middle of the driveway, laughing like monsters. Eventually, it's Levi and me who push them into my house.

They enter and settle down on the sofa comfortably. I thought dad would not let me date Levi because of the reason that I will probably try to ask his parents about my mom. But, dad seems to be enjoying talking with them. Unexpectedly, this evening seems to be going well until…Zeke says something that seems to bother dad.

"So, where's Tr-uh..the tea?" Zeke stutters. Shauna shoots him a dirty look which ought to shut him up. Dad smiles apologetically and rushes to the kitchen to get some drinks for them. Levi, like a gentleman, also goes to help dad but returns back to the living room, shooed away by dad. I smile sadly for him and head into the kitchen.

I grab some glasses from dad's hands and ask "So, what do you think?". He pours soda in both of them and says "It seems to be going very well but I will talk to them about you, don't worry". I sigh and return to the living room. I offer everyone drinks and sit on the bean bag, listening to their chatter.

"So, let's talk about Audrey and Levi" says dad almost like a question. Zeke nods and says "What is there to talk about?". "You know we need to settle some ground rules for them" explains dad.

"What ground rules?" asks Zeke. Dad rolls his eyes and says "Whatever Zeke". Shauna snickers at both of them. "Anyways, the rules are- no going out without telling us, no riding bikes, no kissing-" dad's lecture is interrupted by Zeke's question.

"What!? No kissing? Then why are they two dating?" he exclaims. "They are too young for it and I am sure Tobias will agree with me" Shauna explains. Dad nods along with her statement and continues to list his rules.

"Remember I told you that you would never let your daughter date when Tr..uh-" Zeke clears his throat after receiving a threatening look from Dad "-That's it".

Shauna nods and before she can say anything, I ask Zeke "When?". Zeke says "When you were five years old".

"But, I don't remember-" I am cut off by dad saying strictly "Audrey, Let the adults talk". I nod apologetically. After a while, I go to the kitchen to fix myself a glass of water. I was just filling my glass when a noise like someone is clearing their throat makes me jump. I turn around and see Levi leaning against the kitchen counter. I smile and say "Well, those were quite some rules".

He says "Yeah, but I can live with them".

"Yup me too" I reply. "So, listen-" Levi says but I hold a hand to stop him from speaking because I hear dad argue with Zeke. I gesture for Levi to follow me. He stands behind me as I press my ear close to the wall using a glass. This is what I hear-

"Why haven't you told her about Tris?"

"Because what she did to me was wrong and I don't want Audrey to meet her"

"But don't you think at some point, she is going to ask you about her?"

"I can handle her. I am her father Zeke"

"This isn't right man. She deserves to know who her mother is"

"Even after what happened between us? You think she should meet her and probably that punk-ass too?"

"I don't care what happened!"

"Zeke calm down!"

"No Shauna. He can't do this. Don't you think it's unfair to Audrey and Tris? Even Tris doesn't get to meet her own daughter"

I move away from the wall and cover my mouth with my right hand. Levi puts the glass I was holding away and asks me what happened. I don't answer him as even I am too shocked to recover from what I heard. A smile creeps up on my face as realisation hits me. Tris is my mother. TRIS IS MY MOTHER!

I sit on the kitchen floor and explain Levi everything that has happened till date regarding my mom. He hugs me and said that he is very happy that I finally know who she is.

Although, I only know her name, it already feels like I know everything about her. I think I have read a similar name before in grandma's house. I make a mental plan to call grandma tonight or maybe tomorrow. We both get up and move to the living room and act like we didn't hear anything.

The entire evening goes by Dad chatting with Zeke and Shauna and Levi trying to flirt with me. He used pick-up lines like 'Did you swallow wi-fi? Because I feel we have a connection" or 'Did you swallow a magnet? Because I feel attracted to you" or 'Tongue is the strongest muscle in our body, wanna fight?". Those were cheesiest pick-up lines I've ever heard.

Around eight, the Pedrads leave. I bid all of them goodbye and fall back tiredly into the couch. Dad closes the door and lies wearily on the bean bag. We both order Chinese for dinner. I eat my food hastily and go to bed early. I make sure that dad is not wandering outside my room and ring grandma.

She picks it up at the third ring and says "Hello, Audrey?".

 **A/N: Hi again! I hope you enjoyed this chapter even if it's not my best work. The next chapter will be uploaded by Sunday. Thanks for reading! Please follow, favourite and review!**


	10. Chapter 10

**A/N: Hi! It's been a long time since I have updated this story. Sorry for the delay, I have had a lot of exams and decisions to make. The next few updates will also be kind of delayed. This and next few months are hectic for me. Anyway, enjoy reading!**

"Hello, Audrey?" grandma says. "Hi, grandma. It's me, Audrey" I reply. "I can't hear you" grandma shouts, forcing me to pull my phone away from my ear. "Hold on, let me go outside" she shouts again.

I hear the shuffling of footsteps on the other side. Not of a single soul but of multiple people. I instantly ask "Grandma, are you somewhere outside?". I hear the clinking of glasses followed by giggling sounds. "Audrey? Is that you? I finally got three bars" she says breathlessly.

"Yeah, I mean yes-" I correct myself "-where are you?". "I'm just getting a couple of drinks with my friends. Is everything alright?" she asks. "Yes, everything is fine. I had something to ask you but you seem busy, I'll call you later" I say. "No, no, no, no, you can ask me" she says, dragging every syllable. Before I can say anything, I hear a few hoots and realise she is probably in a bar and intoxicated. It's hard to believe that she still goes to such places. "Grandma, you sound drunk. I'll talk to you later" I say. "Okaaaay, sweeeetie!" she says. "Drink less!" I say jokingly. I hear a high-pitched laugh on the other end. I shut my phone and sigh. The only person who can understand me right now is grandma. But, of course, she has to get drunk tonight. God, old people have to get wild in their 70s.

I lay back, relax my stiff back and stare aimlessly outside the window into the night sky. It's a starless night. Unlike back in grandma's home. Laying in her backyard and watching the stars and if we're, dad and I, fortunate we spot a shooting star. I wish I could see one tonight. I'd wish to meet my mother with no hassle. Only if we lived in the countryside. It's pretty damn hard to see a shooting star in the city. What you can only see in the sky are humungous buildings and telephone wires. After pondering about the drawbacks of city life, I fell asleep.

* * *

"Okay, you can leave now" I say tapping on the roof of the car. Instead of simply leaving, dad decides to roll down the window and say "I don't think I need to repeat myself-" I try to cut him off by sighing loudly, only to be cut off by dad again "-you're a smart, young girl and I want you to remain thin, not bloated by that idiot". "What do you mean bloated by him?" I ask him, totally confused. His ears grow red and he answers "Oh, nothing. It's nothing. Forget about it. Bye hon!". I watch the car drive off around the block, making sure he is not going to stick his nose in my business anytime soon.

* * *

"What do you want to do?" Levi asks. I shrug in response. "Alright, um-" he opens an almirah full of board games and asks "-Monopoly? Ludo? Guess who?". "No, I am not in the mood of board games" I say feeling extremely bored.

Suddenly, the door creaks open and a dark-skinned head pops up out of the doorframe, it's Zeke.

"I heard someone's bored. So, I came to liven up the party. Also, because your dad called me to check upon you" he says "Your dad is very insecure". I chuckle and Zeke says "See! I made you laugh. Now, come on, let's go somewhere outside".

* * *

After a couple of rounds of bumping cars, I feel exhausted and sit next to Shauna. Zeke brought us to 'Adventerra', an amusement park. We started high with a rollercoaster ride. Then, we went for Monsteroo, Cup-o-tea and Spinning Disk. Finally, we ended up at the Bumping car station.

"Hey!" I greet Shauna, breathing heavily. "Water?" she offers me a bottle of water. I sip from it and watch Levi hit his dad's car from the behind while he was clicking a selfie. I laugh so hard that I almost spit water out of mouth. I hold my stomach and ask Shauna "Are they always like that? You must've have a lot of entertainment"

She smiles and says "Yeah. They're like two grown up babies that I have to handle". "Must be a lot of work" I comment. "Exactly, do you and Tobias fight?" she asks.

"Very rarely, taking into consideration that fighting over chocolate cake isn't included" I joke. She chuckles and says "That's Four for you". I quirk my eyebrows and ask "Is dad's nickname Four?". "Yes, in fact Zeke named him 'Four'"

"Oh, he never told me that" I say, deep down realising how much he hasn't told me. Shauna doesn't say anything on this. "Anyway, tell me more about him in High School" I say, yearning to learn about his life before me. "You wouldn't believe but he was a lady's man back in the old days" she says smiling. "Really? Oh my!" I say completely surprised.

"Every single girl was after him. But, being the gentleman that he was and still is, he never played with their hearts" she continues "However, he was mesmerised by this petite blond gal. He seemed to forget how to speak properly around her. Zeke and I would purposely push Tobias onto her. It was so embarrassing for him. He used to walk her to her classes and then, eventually her home. Your dad was a stalker when it came to her. He changed his classes to be in the same one as her. He changed his hairstyle the way she said she liked it. They were high school lovers".

Before I have the time to ask her who she was, Zeke and Levi come rushing towards us. They grab our hands and drag us towards some crazy rides. The entire evening passes by in the amusement park. Even though I had fun, I feel disappointed in the back of my mind not getting to know who was the lucky girl my dad fell for. I realise that she may not be necessarily my mother but as they say 'Hope never dies'.

I wish I could be the brave girl at such time. Just pack my bags and leave to search for my mother. If only if it were that easy. I can't leave dad with a torn piece of paper mentioning my unexpected departure with the return date not written anywhere. I can't escape the town with my friends. It will be extremely inconsiderate of me. After all, he is my dad. The only parent who has been there for me since my birth. All I can do is hope I get to know who she is before time and precious opportunities run out.

 **A/N: Hi again! I will try my best to upload another chapter by Sunday. No promises though. Thank you for reading! Keep up with the reviews and follows and favourites!**


	11. Chapter 11

**Dear Readers,**

 **Hi guys! Long time no see. I have decided that I don't want to continue this story anymore. I am taking it down. I am not impressed by the storyline and my way of writing. Over the month of November, I have tried to improve my creative writing skills. In my mind, the way I had imagined the story would go did not actually go that way. I know it's my fault. Also, my update schedule will remain irregular for the next four or five months. I have major exams coming. But, I want to thank everyone of my readers and those who were generous enough to leave a review. Thank you!**

 **If anyone wants to know how the story ends, feel absolutely free to message me or leave a review asking that. Once again, I am sorry.**

 **And thanks a ton! to every fellow reader.**

 **Love,**

 **Divergentcake4Four**

 **P.S. I will be updating "Waiting Forever".**

 **Here the ending-**

So, it seems that some of you want to know how the story ends. Here how it goes-

Audrey goes on few dates with Levi and learns more and more about her father from his parents. They eventually tell her about Tris, the blond gal Tobias fell for. Audrey thinks that she must be a highschool sweetheart and not that big of a deal. But as it turns out that she was the greatest deal in Tobias's life. She asks her grandma about her. Evelyn describes her vaguely, saying that Tobias didn't bring her home to meet Evelyn very often. Thus, she knows little of her.

Audrey does some research on Facebook and has to pay Eric to get information about Tris out of him.

Audrey plans to run away and soon, Levi joins the plan. They run away together to a place that i made up called "Devante" (i don't know if it exists). Tobias goes mad searching for them. The police begins the search. Soon, Audrey meets Tris. She is with Eric and loves him. She also does drugs and alcohol. Audrey is mad at her. She yells and yells until she proves that Tris hurt her father and ruined their life. Tris is shocked. Eventually, the police finds Levi and Audrey. Tobias scolds them for running away and grounds the both of them. Audrey tells him what actually happened on the trip.

He is mad and angry but decides to tell her. They were highschool lovers for three years. A few weeks later after their graduation, tris told him that she is pregnant with his child. Tobias was happy as he imagined a new future for them. He tells Tris how he feels and that he wants to marry her. Tris felt trapped and rejected his proposal. He was heartbroken.  
Eventually, they broke up after Audrey was born because Tobias found that Tris was planning to run away after giving birth. She felt that her freedom was being taken away from her as she was just in her teenage years.

Tobias couldn't tie a leash around her anymore. He couldn't force her into a relationship she didnt want to be a part of. She went away. But she started using Tobias whenever she wanted money or a place to live when she found that he still cares for her. Tobias realises he is being taken advantage of. He stops helping tris. That is when to hurt Tobias, she enters into a relationship with Eric, his enemy.  
Since then, they have never talked.

Audrey feels sad for him and promises that she will never run away again. She is angry at her mother but is surprised when Tris calls his father to apologise for what happened in the past. Later, she finds out that Tris has shifted to Illinois to start a better life.  
In the epilogue, audrey opens the door to the house to her mother wishing her a happy sixteenth birthday. 


End file.
